Catastrophic engine damage due to intermediate shaft bearing failure. There are no signs that the part will fail. There is a grinding noise in the engine and upon stopping all the oil leaks out. As soon as the noise is heard, the engine is irreparable damaged. Instant, catastrophic damage. Engine is a total loss. Bearing is a defective design and has been redesigned in newer models.

- Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA

Traveling 75mph on freeway when oil & engine lights came on and vehicle simultaneously came to dead stop in traffic; diagnosed as catastrophic engine failure by dealer service mgr., engine replaced at cost of $17,000+. no prior warning. No fault of my own per svc.mgr. 38K miles on 2005 vehicle, 3 mo out of warranty. Many similar incidents reported on several web sites. Service mgr reported Porsche well aware of this issue but does nothing because its too costly to repair and prefers to handle on case by case basis. Sometimes covers part of cost, sometimes nothing. Had I not been able to brake and coast to stop, I would have rolled over and most likely been killed! damaged engine returned to Porsche in germany. I have the part that broke from which little balls spewed throughout the engine. I am informed this occurs in approx. 20% of Porsche Boxsters and other Porsche vehicles for several years until they redesigned the bolt in 2010 models. Unable to determine how many injuries and/or deaths resulting from these catastrophic engine failures because accidents would appear to be from driver error and no one would know the engine failed under these circumstances! Porsche employees are instructed not to acknowledge knowing anything about this being an ongoing issue and not to make repairs at Porsche expense except for the customers who raise the biggest fuss. Another Boxster was in the shop at the same time as mine for the same problem. The google address link below shows a photo of a Boxster crankshaft and intermediate shaft. One of the connecting rods broke near the piston wrist pin end and the intermediate shaft is damaged. This catastrophic engine failure is the result of: 1) a seized connecting rod bearing, 2) a loss of oil pressure, 3) bad original component design, 4) intermediate shaft assembly failure (bolts or mechanical connection eg: Weld, crimp). This is what happened to my car. www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?T=160705.

- Sanibel, FL, USA

My 2005 Porsche Boxster, 23K mi, had catastrophic engine failure at idle. The engine stalled;I was able to restart but a loud clanging noise came from engine. The car then died again. The mechanic said it was due to an intermediate shaft (ims) failure; the required engine replacement is $14K. The mechanic said he has heard of significant number of ims failures (but Porsche has not notified owners). There were no injuries, but certainly engine failure like this could have serious consequences at freeway speeds. Porsche forums on internet show frequency of failures from this defect (poorly designed bearing assembly on ims) is very high, as much as 8-11% in one forum poll.

- Richland, WA, USA

2005 Porsche Boxster. Consumer states engine made grinding a sound and would not start the consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealer, where he was informed the vehicle needed a new engine. The consumer stated no one could provide an explanation as to why a vehicle with such low miles would need a new engine.

- Vero Beach, FL, USA

I was driving on the inner lane of the freeway at 65mph. The engine suddenly stalled and the check engine light started flashing. I managed to have the car sliding toward the shoulder and get off freeway. The car wasn't able to restart again. A highway patrol came by and helped to push my car to wilder shoulder for safety. The rear bumper was damaged in the process. The car was towed to the dealer for inspection and still in the shop now. The mechanist said the engine need to be replaced.

- San Jose, CA, USA